The Senate will resume the debate on amending the mental health law, with over 30 invited guests scheduled to speak.

The Health and General Legislation committees of the Senate began debating changes to the current mental health law on April 29th (Senate Press). With a list of over 30 speakers, a plenary session of the Senate committees will continue this afternoon with the debate on the bill that modifies the current mental health regulations, aiming to improve the response to situations that currently lack adequate support. The confirmed presentations for today at 2:00 PM, and the additional meetings planned to discuss this issue (with at least 60 invited guests in total), contradict the criticisms made a few days ago by Kirchnerism, which accused the government of wanting to quickly push forward the initiative. During the session, speakers will include Ricardo Marcelo Corral, president of the Argentine Association of Psychiatrists; Marcelo Clingo, president of the Federation of Psychologists of the Argentine Republic (FEPRA); Julieta Calmels, sub-secretary of Mental Health, Problematic Consumption, and Violence in the Health Sector of Buenos Aires; and Martín Sebastián Malgá, sub-secretary of Mental Health and Addictions of La Pampa. The plenary session is composed of the Health and General Legislation committees of the Senate. Both are chaired by libertarian legislators: Ivanna Arrascaeta (San Luis) and Nadia Márquez, respectively. The first meeting took place at the end of last month. During that meeting, the central administration sent Liliana González, the director of comprehensive mental health care, who stated: "After 15 years since the law was enacted, we can conclude that, in this way, it does not function adequately." The official explained that the text is the result of dozens of dialogues with "patients, families, NGOs, the 24 jurisdictions," and also with "all publicly available cases." Liliana González, director of comprehensive mental health care at the Ministry of Health. This was objected to by Senator Lucía Corpacci (Catamarca), a Kristinian and physician, who retorted: "There are 18 provinces that reject the modification of the law," she said. And she added, "They were invited to a meeting, the issue was discussed, and three days later, it was presented in Congress." According to González, the changes aim to "avoid tragic cases of suicides and severe assaults on third parties due to the inability to receive adequate treatment." This highlights the need for involuntary hospitalizations and the "concept of prevention, rehabilitation, and recovery as the first level of care." Subsequently, she detailed more specific concepts to avoid inaccurate and subjective diagnoses. In particular, she emphasized the "formation of an interdisciplinary team, which must include psychiatrists," to "diagnose organic mental health conditions." The government's idea is that, in the event of a need to make a decision quickly, and if a clinical doctor is faced with such a situation, guidelines from this team should be available within 24 hours. Another point she mentioned, in relation to outpatient systems, is that a judge could supervise, after the initial intervention in a serious case, for six months. For her part, Corpacci also mentioned the current situation regarding the general funding of the healthcare system, specifically focusing on the Laura Bonaparte hospital. Her colleague from the same bloc, Fernando Salino, agreed. In that regard, the representative from the province of San Luis added: "It has been a difficult situation." The libertarian legislators and presidents of the Health and General Legislation committees of the Senate, Ivanna Arrascaeta and Nadia Márquez, respectively. The leaders of the blocs will hold a parliamentary working session starting at 6:00 PM. It will be decided whether to hold a session tomorrow, starting at 4:00 PM. The earlier time is to allow for the public hearing (judicial appointments), which is already scheduled to begin at 10:00 AM. Except for the opinions related to diplomatic promotions (which are still uncertain), the rest of the agenda seems to be agreed upon: an agreement with holdout creditors, the discussion of the "Clean Record" bill separately from the electoral reform of the Casa Rosada, which aims to disrupt the primary elections. Infobae confirmed that an informational meeting (where no vote can be taken) will be held on Wednesday, starting at 3:00 PM. For now, there is no individual consideration of any issue, and everything is being discussed as a package, something that currently lacks the necessary votes. In parallel, the libertarian legislators have further scrutinized the original bill that "protects" private property and want to finalize the draft. They need allies, who are closely following the developments regarding the "Clean Record" bill. What will happen this afternoon is the approval of four bicameral bills. The most sensitive one is the one that reviews the functioning of intelligence agencies. The invitation is always confidential. Meanwhile, two more bicameral bills will be added tomorrow: one for the Public Prosecutor's Office and one for State Reform.